Social Distancing in the Snow: A Quick Trip Up the Angeles Crest

Just 45 minutes up the 2 freeway, and on the Angeles Crest Highway, and we're 7,000 feet above it all, enjoying quite a bit of snow.

That was our adventure on Saturday, as the Blogger Kid 2.0 and I grabbed a few sleds and headed up the nearby mountains, inside the Angeles National Forest, in order to have some fun with the cold stuff. We probably could have used slightly thicker jackets and gloves, because we weren't expecting *this much* snow. But it was well worth the drive up.

At the lower elevations, the crowds were surprisingly heavy. Apparently people were itching to get out of their homes. But with so many people further down the mountain, I'm not sure safety precautions were being met. Up the mountain and in the snow, however, the number of people was tiny — and we were able to have fun, safely away from anyone else.

The snow will be up here for a little bit longer, thanks to all the rain we've had so far this spring. If you're getting cabin fever, I'd suggest you get up there. A few more pics:

There's Snow In Thar Mountains!

Winter's back! The view from Glendale of the snow-covered San Gabriel mountains yesterday.

Snow Day in the Slowly Reborn Angeles National Forest

Sunday afternoon up in the mountains, north of L.A.

We almost didn't make it up into the mountains for our annual snow play. But thanks to the recent rains, which dumped more of the good stuff last week, there was still plenty of snow waiting for us as we made the hour-long journey up past Newcomb's Ranch restaurant and Mt. Waterman.

It was the perfect weekend to travel up to the snow, given the warm temps (which is rapidly melting the white stuff). And yet, it wasn't crowded at all up in the mountains, other than a rather busy Mt. Waterman. We grabbed lunch at Newcomb's Ranch, which was busy -- but by no means packed. (We also drove by a film shoot for "Law & Order: Los Angeles" at the start of the drive, just outside of Sunland.)

Meanwhile, two years after the devastating Station Fire, I'm happy to see a bit more green on the mountains (thanks to all those rains) and even pine needles returning to some charred trees. But sadly, too much of the forest continues to look like a lunar landscape. Nonetheless, the highway signs are now new, and contruction on replacements for the burned-out structures is well underway. And TreePeople is hard at work restoring the forest's tree count.

The boys, of course, enjoyed playing in the snow -- although Blogger Toddler 2.0 wasn't quite sure what to make of it at first.

The trip to the snow is quick, but it used to be quicker -- back when the Angeles Crest Highway (the 2) was open above La Canada Flintridge. The highway hasn't been open since the Station Fire, and the businesses in the forest are getting restless. Fewer folks bother to take the longer route from Sunland (which is what we did).

More pics:







One of these days we'll buy an actual sled. But yes, that's our low-rent alternative: plastic tub covers.


Lunch at Newcomb's Ranch.


Skiing at Mt. Waterman.


Bridge near the start of the drive.


Out of charred remains, new life emerges...


... yet the landscape is still scarred and pretty desolate, post-fire.

The Station Fire, One Year Later

It's now been a year since the start of the Station Fire, the devastating blaze that charred a whopping 160,000 acres of the Angeles National Forest north of La Cañada Flintridge.

Not only did the fire rage on for two months -- finally being contained in mid-October -- but it also led to the deaths of two firefighters, and destroyed more than 80 homes.

It's still painful to think that the forest north of L.A. won't again be like we knew it, at least in our lifetime. Franklin Avenue visited the devastation back in April (read about it here) and it was heartbreaking.

As the Glendale News-Press reports, there's still plenty of anger over the county's and the forest service's reaction to the blaze, and the recovery process since then.

It's now well known that the county and forest service had an opportunity in the first day to call out helicopters and attack the fire with water before it got out of control. They didn't. And the fire, well, got out of control in ways that defy explanation.

The paper writes:

For some residents who lost their homes and face a long and complicated rebuilding process, there is a deep sense of betrayal. And among county, state and federal representatives, there is frustration and concern about a lack of transparency and reform.

"It has been a year and still no reform," said Tony Bell, spokesman for Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich. "We are smack dab in the middle of fire season again, and still no reform."

Antonovich was one of the first in a chorus of voices, including Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank), questioning the U.S. Forest Service's handling of the Station fire, particularly the use, or the failure to use, aerial water drops during the initial days of the blaze.

The rains earlier this year at least brought back a bit of green to the charred mountains. But it's going to take years to nurse the forest back to health.

Snow Day in the Angeles National Forest, Eight Months After the Fires

Tragic.

That's the first thought that goes through your head as you enter the Angeles National Forest. Miles upon miles of burnt trees and desolate landscape, all caused by the Station Fire -- the worst fire in Los Angeles County history.


The foundation is all that's left of this burned-out home.




We finally made the trek up to the Angeles National Forest on Saturday, in order to play in the still-abundant mountain snow. We normally head up there in January or February, but the Angeles Crest Highway (the 2, which starts in La Canada Flintridge), has been closed due to threats of mudslides and debris on the road.

April seems awfully late to find snow up in our local mountains -- but a quick check on the Mt. Waterman website showed that plenty of the white stuff was still around. What's more, the Newcomb's Ranch restaurant deep in the forest was finally open again on the weekend.

With Blogger Kid excited about the snow -- and Blogger Baby 2.0 having never seen snow -- the timing was right to finally make it up there. On Saturday, we piled the car with makeshift sleds (a.k.a., storage container tops), gloves, jackets and snacks.






The Angeles Crest Highway remains closed in the burn areas, which is why we had to add a bit more to our usual drive time by taking the Big Tujunga Canyon Road (which starts in Sunland) to the Angeles Forest Highway -- which then connects with the open portion of the Angeles Crest.

It doesn't take long to see the fire's aftermath. The Station Fire, which burned for over a month, starting Aug. 26, 2009 -- charred 160,577 acres (251 square miles), led to two firemen's deaths, and destroyed 89 homes.

Eight months later, there are signs of life in portions of the burnt areas. The winter rains have allowed for some green weeds to poke through. (Nice now, but eventually that stuff will turn dry and be dangerous fuel for new fires.)





And we saw plenty of construction workers, still helping rebuild. New railings and signs have already been erected, but camp sites and picnic areas remain closed in the burn areas. Actually, it's illegal to even park in the burn areas, as the National Forest Service asks people to let the forest heal with minimal intrusion.

We kept driving up and seeing mile after mile of what Evan called "the sad trees."


A group of Corvette owners were dining at Newcomb's Ranch when we arrived.

But finally, as we hit about 5,000 feet elevation, we started seeing green again. And thankfully, as we got to Newcomb's Ranch, the trees -- and the restaurant -- were indeed still there.



We kept driving up to 6,000 feet elevation, where the snow is still on the ground in the spring, and then to 7,000 feet, where Mt. Waterman is located.

A half a mile down from Mt. Waterman (which had a healthy-sized crowd, some of whom were there to ski, and others were there for a weekend chili cookoff) is where we parked and spent a fun afternoon playing in the snow.







That's one of the many things I love about Southern California. We're just 45 minutes away from snow -- which means, depending on the traffic on the 10, we could potentially get to the snow faster than we can get to the ocean from our home. That's pretty cool -- there are people in cold climates that can't get to snow as fast as we can.

With such an amazing resource in our backyard, I'm always surprised at how few people drive up into the mountains. Now, I'm a bit grateful: If more Angelenos drove up here, the forest couldn't handle it.

But with still so little awareness of this amazing natural resource so close to our homes, there's also so little outrage over what happened last year.

Where's the outrage? The Station Fire destroyed one-fourth -- ONE-FOURTH! -- of the Angeles National Forest. And it probably won't recover during our lifetime. Perhaps our kids -- or our kids' kids -- will once again enjoy the forest as we once did pre-fire. Whoever did this needs to be held accountable.

Thankfully some folks are helping the healing process along. In January, the Angeles National Forest signed an agreement with the non-profit TreePeople to plant over 22,000 seedlings during the 2011 and 2012 planting season.





The snow will still be there for a bit longer -- take advantage of it while you can.

No More Day Trips to the Snow? Angeles Crest Highway Remains Closed

Driving up the Angeles Crest Highway (the 2) above La Canada-Flintridge to play in the snow has become an annual winter tradition for us (as we've written about many times, including here).

It's one of L.A.'s surprisingly best-kept secrets. Everyone knows you can head over to Big Bear for some fun in the snow. But fewer folks, for some reason, realize that snow can be found just 40 minutes or so north of us in the mountains.

Well, it may be all moot now. And the Station Fire, unfortunately, is to blame. With so much dead plant life and trees up there, it's a mess -- and a dangerous drive, especially given how curvy the highway is.

Now comes word, via the L.A. Times, that the Angeles Crest might not re-open at all until March:

The stretch from La Cañada Flintridge to Islip Saddle (at a junction with Highway 39) has been closed since Jan. 18 when heavy rains began that caused mudslides and washed away roads along the route in the Angeles National Forest.

Hillsides in that area were scorched by last year’s Station Fire, the largest blaze in Los Angeles County history, and the fire destroyed guard rails and signage and burned off road stripping. Officials said that the lack of vegetation on the hillsides was one factor that led to the washouts and severe road conditions... Officials said they hoped to reopen the road by late March.

Most of the snow will be melted by then, which completely ruins any chance of our usual quick ride to pay with the white stuff. It also means Baby Blogger 2.0 won't get his first taste of snow this year after all.

It's pretty depressing to realize that this is our new reality in the now-charred Angeles National Forest. And as bad as I feel, I'm thinking about how the folks behind Mt. Waterman -- the only skiing area up in that part of the woods -- and Newcomb's Ranch, the famed restaurant way up there, have got it much, much worse.

I gotta imagine Newcomb's has had to lay off most of its staff, as it hasn't had many chances to open following the fire. And Mt. Waterman posted this on Tuesday:

2-3-2010 - 2pm - Good Afternoon from Mt Waterman. We still have a solid 4-5 foot base, unfortunately we do not have a road to get to the Ski Area. Cal Trans snow blower is down at this time, they are trying to get a swap for a new blower. At this point we have no idea when we will get the road open. We just posted a couple of images from the road below. Keep checking with us as we will give you updates as we get them. Pray for Snow and a Road!

And here's a pic from the site that shows that not everything was burned. (And look at all that snow!):


(Pic by Craig Stewart)

The Station Fire: Like an H-Bomb Hit North of Los Angeles

Metblogs L.A. author Lulu did her homework and came up with this stunning stat: The amount of energy released by the devastating Station Fire is equal to 3 megatons of TNT -- or an average-size H-bomb.

Yikes.

She writes:

Somehow the equivalence, however, makes me think of a point made by Thom Andersen, in Los Angeles Plays Itself, which I had the pleasure of seeing a few weeks ago at the Aero Theatre in Santa Monica, with live questions and answers with the writer/director. Andersen observes, among many things in his essay-as-film, how often Los Angeles plays the scene of post-apocalyptic disaster, and how well suited to this role are the desolate downtown neighborhoods such as Bunker Hill. Part of this type casting is, no doubt, a certain Weltanschauung of audiences and producers about Los Angeles.

Meanwhile, some good news from the fire: Newcomb's Ranch says that it survived the fires and will reopen once the Angeles Crest Highway reopens.

Also, the Mt. Waterman Ski Resort, near Newcomb's Ranch on the Angeles Crest, reports that it, too, has survived, and hopes to open this winter once the snows hit:

Caltrans has already awarded contracts to fix the road (guardrails, signs, etc.) and lets hope the road opens this winter so we can all enjoy the skiing this winter. Is this really going to be an El Nino year?

Also to note: The Angeles Crest Hwy is now closed from La Canada to Islip Saddle. No date has been set to reopen the road. Much work will need to be done before most of us will be able to enjoy Mt Waterman again.

Remembering Better Times Inside the Angeles National Forest

(Pics from happier times inside the Angeles forest.)

The first reports are in from how the Angeles National Forest fared with the Station Fire -- and it's not good.



The Pasadena Star-News' Dan Abendschein visited the forest -- still off limits for the most part -- and says the view is heartbreaking:

The news is not good. The lower end of the forest, up to the intersection with Big Tujunga Canyon Road, is absolutely devastated. There are stretches where there is almost no foliage left anywhere in sight. Guard rails are laying on the side of the road, the wooden posts that held them up burned to ashes. Without any trees left for wind break, yesterday's slight breeze felt very strong, sending up little dust devils whirling around the charred landscape.

There are few bright spots left for outdoors enthusiasts. Hiking trails off Big Tujunga Canyon Road will be useless. The trail up to Strawberry Peak that starts near Mt. Wilson is burned.

The backside of Mt. Wilson is one of the few exceptions in the area. Firefighters did an amazing job protecting the area, and hiking trails down in the canyon next to it could still be intact. Another bright spot is Switzer Falls, an extremely popular picnic area low in the park. Though the fire burned hillsides on either side of the canyon it sits in, the canyon itself is still mostly intact, especially right in the picnic area. The hiking trails in the area may not be open for a while, though, as trees and boulders have rolled down the hills into the canyon.

The L.A. Times editorial page stressed the need for better funding to help restore the Angeles National Forest:

Civilization grows so close to the Angeles that simply leaving its ash-strewn acres alone will not be enough to restore it. The landscape will need time to regrow; it must be protected from rogue bikers who see an opportunity to cut new trails across sensitive terrain, and from marijuana farmers and squatters. Any archaeological sites revealed by fire -- such as caves or petroglyphs -- must be mapped and preserved. Existing trails will need to be repaired. Tree planting will help bring back shaded forest areas. Invasive species that attempt to take hold must be rooted out. Something will have to be done about animals that have lost their habitat and show up in suburbia searching for food and water.

Such civic-minded groups as the Boy Scouts, the Sierra Club and the Warrior Society, a mountain-biking organization, will almost surely volunteer to help. That community involvement is welcome and vital, but it's not enough. The national forests and parks have been underfunded for years and show it. Facilities are worn, the maintenance backlog is staggering, pine bark beetles are destroying woods and staffing is inadequate for policing, let alone conducting field studies and replanting natural environments.

Modern Hiker, meanwhile, has a strong post on how to help the forest begin its recovery:

The way I see it is this – we should all do our best to try to pitch in to the best of our ability. In all likelihood, we will not be allowed to hike in the Western San Gabriels for quite some time — so why not use one or two of our hiking weekends per month replanting trees, rebuilding trails, or volunteering at information desks?

Full recovery will likely take decades, especially for the higher burn areas. But every hour we volunteer to the rehabilitation efforts will not only help speed up the likely re-opening date, but will also ensure that future generations get to hike through the same forested, green canopies we got to enjoy.

The fires are still burning, although we can't smell the smoke or see the flames anymore. Authorities pushed back the target date for full containment of the Station Fire until this Saturday.

Then, the healing can finally begin.



(All pics from a visit we took up to the snow in 2008.)

Fire Watch: TV Stations Make Contingency Plans; After The Fire's Out, What Will Be Left?

Blogger Preschooler and I can't help it; we're drawn to our front windows, checking up on the fire in the San Gabriel Mountains (which we face) every few minutes. Sometimes, the flames are huge and the sky is a bright orange-red. Sometimes, smoke is thick and we can't see what's going on up there.

Some days, the flames are small, and we imagine things are getting better. Tonight, the flames were tall, widespread... and seemingly unbeatable. Blogger Preschooler, meanwhile, is alternately fascinated and freaked out... but on balance, he now understands that we're still too many miles away to ever be hit by the flames.

Evan is familiar with the mountains, for as you know, we hit the Angeles Crest Highway each year to play in the snow deep inside the Angeles National Forest.

Just 45 minutes away from Glendale, it's more like a world away up there. But now, I fear future trips up there will be very different, as we take in the charred remains of a forest rather than this:



On Monday I asked around, via Twitter, if Newcomb's Ranch, the restaurant and bar located on the Angeles Crest deep in the forest, had been struck by the fire -- but no one seems to know for sure.

If so, that would be another blow. As I wrote in 2008, Newcomb's is a pleasant surprise -- particularly for an isolated restaurant 27 miles from civilization.

For now, it looks like Newcomb's and the Mt. Waterman ski resort isn't impacted... but this fire is pretty unpredictable. Mt. Wilson wasn't expected at first to be hit... and now everyone is still bracing for what appears to be an inevitability.

SPEAKING OF MT. Wilson, at NBC-owned KNBC, staffers immediately began shipping in equipment from various parts of the country in order to build temporary transmitter facilities for the station and its Spanish-lingo sisters, KVEA and KWHY.

KNBC wasn't waiting for Mt. Wilson to go up in flames before taking action. A station spokesman said contingency plans hadn't been developed before the fire but were put in place once it became apparent that Mt. Wilson was in danger.

"This is a fluid situation, and the details are still being worked out," she said.

Should the Mt. Wilson transmitting towers be destroyed by fire, local stations wouldn't take as big a hit as they might have a few decades ago: Most cable, satellite and telco systems won't be affected, as stations now deliver their feeds to providers via fiber-optic lines.

In Los Angeles, 86% of the market's viewers receive station signals via one of those services. Hispanic households would be hit harder, as the number drops to 76% in that demographic.

Stations such as Tribune's KTLA have been advising viewers that they may lose their signal -- and to watch its feed via the Internet if the station is knocked off the air.

Across town at CBS' KCBS/KCAL duopoly, the stations were also streaming their newscasts on their website as execs continued to monitor the situation.

Fire/Air Quality Update: We're Choking Here in Glendale

See where it's shaded to designate "VERY UNHEALTHY" air? Yep, we live right at the edge of that.

After three days of watching the flames in the mountains above La Canada-Flintridge from our front window, the smoke has now gotten so bad that we've got virtually no visibility anymore here in Glendale. The sky is an eerie orange -- with the sun one big red blob. So this is what the apocalypse will look like.

The smoke is not only thick, but the outdoors smell like one big campfire -- and you can immediately feel it in the back of your neck. Pieces of ash also float through the air, as you try hard not to breathe while racing to the car. So we're indoors bound for now here at Franklin Avenue HQ.

Unfortunately, according to the L.A. Times, that's because the winds switched direction overnight -- and started sending the smoke right toward residential areas.

Meaning, well, us.

More from the paper:

The fire marched north overnight through remote mountain ridges toward Acton. The U.S. Forest Service was sending firefighters into those areas, which have become the northern edge of the blaze. Mandatory evacuations were in effect in La Cañada Flintridge, Pasadena, La Crescenta, Altadena, Glendale and Big Tujunga Canyon.

Today is supposed to be the last day of a five-day heat wave that has brought triple-digit temperatures along the fire lines. Forecasters said temperatures will drop a few degrees today and that lower temperatures, morning clouds and more humidity are on tap for the next few days.

But even with no winds in the forecast, firefighters said the conditions remain highly dangerous.

Forest Service officials said three civilians were burned and airlifted from rural Big Tujunga Canyon, where at least three to five homes were destroyed. One fire official, after surveying the canyon, estimated that the toll may be much worse.

According to KNX radio, Glendale Unified has already canceled what was planned to be the first day of school Monday.


The view from our front door yesterday, when the smoke was thankfully not heading in our direction. Today we're not so lucky.

No, A Volcano Hasn't Erupted in the Mountains Over Los Angeles

... but it sure looks like it. Here's the view from the 30th floor of 5900 Wilshire -- also known as the Variety Building -- in the Miracle Mile. According to the L.A. Times, this huge plume of smoke is the result of a brush fire in the Angeles National Forest near Highway 39.

The paper reports that campgrounds have now been evacuated in the area. More:

The fire broke out about 4:40 p.m. along San Gabriel Canyon Road near Morris Dam. KABC Channel 7 showed firefighters battling tall flames on a ridge off Highway 39, which is closed in both directions.

The fire burned about 25 acres but was growing. Firefighters and inmate crews were on the scene, and air support was making water drops, officials said.

Black smoke could be seen from around the San Gabriel Valley.

And, of course, from as far away as here in the Miracle Mile, where we've spotted several brush fires this summer, thanks to our vantage point up here.

A few more shots: